Oct 24, 2022
Where Can You Find the Divine?
Our manifestation of resilience, strength, and fortitude can be seen as an incarnation of the divine.
Have you ever passed by a work of art and felt “caught” in it? Where you felt driven to stay and curious about every line, every color, every fragment of the artistic piece? Have you ever wondered what within you caused that attraction?
My Previous Experience with Religion
I wouldn’t consider myself to be a religious person, or at least not anymore. Growing up, I enjoyed going to church. I liked the ritual embedded in the mass that my family and I attended. It was orderly, practiced, and respected by the priest and his volunteers. It reflected how many early Christians in Roman Times practiced mass.
As I got older, I started volunteering as a singer for the youth choir group. I also began volunteering as a teacher assistant for our confirmation groups and as a teacher for our first communion groups.
Despite being well deep-seated within the church, however, I didn’t really understand my religion. I was raised Roman Catholic. But despite my dedication and devotion to the church, I frequently questioned the bible’s stories, their meanings, and the rules (aside from the ten commandments) interpreted from the bible.
The mismatch between my dedication and understanding of the bible eventually made me break from practicing Christianity the way I had all those years growing up. I have dedicated myself instead to finding a new way to understand spirituality and find a connection with the divine outside of religion.
Despite my efforts, however, the concept of religion has continued to call me. I have felt that my current sense of spirituality lacks capturing a similar strength in spirituality that was seized by the followers of the Catholic Church before me. So what is missing?
Understanding the Divine
This post can go in many directions. But I’ll stick with my most recent comprehension of the divine because I think it’s something most people can understand, and that everyone could resonate with too if they were searching for that same missing piece.
Through a multitude of lectures, spiritual stories, and church sittings (I have begun attending mass from different churches), it has become my understanding that the larger entity that some people call God, Yahweh, greater spirit, or in my case, the “universe” or “divine energy” as I refer to it, is in everything we find beautiful.
A painting that grips you has the divine spirit. A radiant sunset or exquisite sunrise has the divine spirit. An enticing melody or soulful harmony has the divine spirit. And why does everything beautiful call us? Because it reflects our own calling for the manifestation of the divine.
You may have heard before, “We are all spiritual beings having a human experience.” A part of our mission, again, from my new understanding, is to find our way in allowing the divinity within us to be reflective of our person, our life’s work, the legacy we leave, and the lives we touch.
Beautiful things call forward our inner potential. They remind us that we too can be as beautiful and divine. They reflect the deeper essence of who we are, beyond flesh and bones.
Our Incarnation of the Divine
Another way to think about it is try to remember a time when you heard a person’s story who had gone through tremendous hardship. As they tell you their story, you may feel a change of energy in your body. Perhaps you feel goosebumps on your skin, a bit of fuzziness in your stomach, a tingling sensation in your chest, or perhaps you become emotionally worked up to the point that your eyes become misty.
Why is this so?
Our manifestation of resilience, strength, and fortitude can be seen as an incarnation of the divine. Even if the person telling the story still has so much more to live, their story calls something deep within us. It’s as we intricately know that they have achieved connecting within their divine self, and making it manifest in the human world.
They have brought that beautiful essence to life.
Final Thoughts
My interpretation of what I have been learning can be wrong, and open to a different interpretation. However, I wanted to share my current perspective because I know many people in today’s world feel lost, alone, and broken. I also think that today’s society over-reinforces people’s lack of spiritual connection and emotional pain, instead of helping them find a path to greater meaning.
If you are one of these people, I invite you to ask yourself: What is the most beautiful thing within me that I can bring into this world?
The answer most likely won’t be clear at first and keep in mind that this will vary for different people. It may also change depending on where you are in life. But I think that in focusing on bringing beauty and divinity to the world, we can become more oriented toward creating a sense of meaning, purpose, and fulfillment for ourselves.
Interested in reading more? Sign up here for my bi-weekly newsletter!
Follow The Orange Journal so you don’t miss a post. Do you love to write about self-improvement and personal development? Learn how to be added as a writer here. 🍊
